What is the single best episode of any TV series that you have ever seen?

[Zkribbler]

The "Gunshy" episode of Maverick.

It began just like an episode of "Gunsmoke"--the main street of a Western town; the camera shoots past the holstered six shooter of the town marshall down to the far end of the street where stands...Maverick???

The theme music builds. At the music's peak, the marshall draws and fires and then...fires again and then...fires again.

Maverick: You want me to stand a little closer, Marshall?

The marshall fans off his final three rounds. Nothing.

Maverick: Come on, Marshall. We both know I'm out of range.

And the show went on like that. It's the only time I've even seen one series spend an entire episode mocking another series...and it did it so well.

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by monkspider


He didn't? What a crummy end to a perfectly good series.

I don't know. I'm trying to figure out what he meant.

[FrustratedPoet]

Re: What is the single best episode of any TV series that you have ever seen?

Originally posted by JohnT
"The Contest" from Seinfeld?

You read my mind, dude.

[FrustratedPoet]

Originally posted by MrWhereItsAt
And that last caption has to be, after so many years, one of the saddest (scripted) moments in a TV show's history.

The final line of the final episode of Cheers comes to mind too: "Sorry, the bar's closed"
*tear*

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Best episode of any TV series ever: the final episode of "Blackadder Goes Forth." Brilliantly takes the central joke of all 4 Blackadder series -- that power is both stupid and unstoppable -- and maps it across WWI trench warfare, turning comedy into tragedy without actually changing anything about the show. Brilliant, incredibly moving, and still funny as hell.

Best episode of an American series: the episode of "The X-Files" in which Peter Boyle plays a life-insurance salesman who can forsee the deaths of the people he meets. The best writing I've ever seen on American TV.

[Urban Ranger]

Some of those old Twilight Zone stories are excellent as well.

[Dis]

many seinfeld episodes.

I remember one episode of Newhart I really enjoyed. Really not that great of a show, but I loved larry, darryl, and darryl. I loved the episode where they thought aliens landed in the town. I was rolling.

There are several cheers and night court episodes as well. And the simpsons as well.

[Monk]

The time in Futurama with Pac-Man and rockin' out to Rush while playing Space Invaders was the most brilliantly thought-out parody/reference I've ever seen. I might hesitate to say it's the funniest or best ever, but I've never laughed harder.

Speaking of Rush - and this is really an off chance - does anybody know which Rush song is being played when the Simpsons go to Canada?

[TheStinger]

Originally posted by Rufus T. Firefly
Best episode of any TV series ever: the final episode of "Blackadder Goes Forth." Brilliantly takes the central joke of all 4 Blackadder series -- that power is both stupid and unstoppable -- and maps it across WWI trench warfare, turning comedy into tragedy without actually changing anything about the show. Brilliant, incredibly moving, and still funny as hell.

Great episode, they really could have done it badly but it was terriffic.

[Richelieu]

TNG's Yesterday's Enterprise is my personal favorite.

John T: on your synopsis!

[Starchild]

JohnT, a Buffy fan after my own heart. Could your wife and I work out some sort of timeshare? I'm getting Season 5 (faux sisters who open the doors of reality for insane biatch gods!) on DVD soon.

[alva]

Originally posted by Rufus T. Firefly
Best episode of any TV series ever: the final episode of "Blackadder Goes Forth." Brilliantly takes the central joke of all 4 Blackadder series -- that power is both stupid and unstoppable -- and maps it across WWI trench warfare, turning comedy into tragedy without actually changing anything about the show. Brilliant, incredibly moving, and still funny as hell.

The last couple of minutes of that show are better then many of the great classic -must- read-intelectual-novels and it's manages to even then be funny

[Wraith]

Ack. What a question. There are a lot of good episodes, how do you choose the "best" one? I mean, different series go for different things. Best comedy, best drama, etc?

I'm going to have to think about this one a bit and get back to you later.

Wraith
"I wish there was a knob on the TV to turn up the intelligence. There's a knob called "brightness", but it doesn't seem to work."
-- Gallagher

[Kassiopeia]

The first one that springs to mind won't mean anything to you... the last episode of the eight-part sketch series Studio Julmahuvi. The way the entire thing just feels like "falling down to pieces" and all that surrealism that's been down there between the lines starts to show itself in its full glory... brilliant. Ends with the director of the sketch show Studio Julmahuvi doing the unthinkable and turning on the recorded laughter to get ratings back up. Satire to the end.

For Star Trek: TNG, the best one is with the aliens that speak in cliches. Such-and-such when the city wall falls down.

Darmok? Yeah, that was a good one. Though I think I liked Inner Light better. But it's been a while...

He never made it home?

Yes, he remained in the loop... don't remember exactly why, he did it to save Al's wife or something?

[Paul Hanson]

"Bart Gets An F", the opening show from the second series of the Simpsons.

Bart learns that if he fails the next test, he'll have to be held back in the fourth grade for an extra year. Despite the various temptations to go and have some fun, he knuckles down and studies his early American history as hard as he can.

He does the test, and asks Mrs. Krabappel to mark it for him as soon as he finishes. And he still fails. Unable to take any more of, the poor little guy bursts into tears. And the audience is struggling to keep them back too; they watched him try so hard to pass this test that when he still can't do it we all feel sorry for him. Wonderfully written episode.